School choice appeals denied by State Board of Education

A dozen school choice appeals were submitted at Monday's State Board of Education meeting. All 12 were denied.

Board chairman Brenda Gullett called the flood of appeals frustrating.

The school choice law allows students to transfer from one district to another, but it also allows school districts to declare themselves exempt if they are under a desegregation order.

This is the first year for the new school choice law, after the previous 1989 law was struck down last year with a judge saying it was unconstitutional to use race as the only factor in determining whether students are allowed to transfer.

Under the stipulations of this new law, the board says they have been slammed with appeals from families whose students were denied to move to a different school by the district.

Gullet said the board does not have the power to make a judicial decision.

"Once they apply to their district and they're denied, then that's their legal due process to come before us," Gullett explained. "Should they take it onto a court of law, it would have been a necessary step that they came to the state board first."

Gullett said the next step for these families will be to take the appeals to court.